On my way home from Lee Kay last Thursday I stopped by Sportsman's Warehouse to check out the inventory, especially the Stoeger Cougar that I've been reading about. I was hoping to raise cash by selling one of my rimfire rifles and get one in the near future. However, Sportsman's was running a no sales tax sale through the 21st and I couldn't resist saving a few bucks and the Cougar followed me home - the effective price would have been around $318 before sales tax. Now I have to move that rimfire before the credit card come due.
I wasn't able to get to the range right away and my weekend was taken up with too many other things. However, I was able to get out this morning to the west side of Utah lake and wring out the new pistol. I was pressed for time since we had a turkey day commitment at my mother-in-law's so I only took 130 rounds with me - a mixture of 115 grain reloads (115 grain copper plated lead over 4.7 grains of WW 231), 115 grain Winchester white box, and some Federal Premium 124 grain hydro-shock.
For once the gun rags gave an accurate review of this pistol's performance. Not one failure to feed, failure to eject, or malfunction of any kind. All the brass ended up in the same general location about seven to eight feet to behind me to my right. Accuracy was great. I haven't shot a centerfire semi-auto pistol in some time - nearly eight years - and my mechanics were less than perfect. However, with one out of three rounds, I was bouncing a four-inch diameter plastic ball all over the place at distances between fifteen and twenty yards.
Double action pull was long, but actually easier and, perhaps, lighter than my Taurus 85 snubbie and was comparable to my S&W model 19. The single action let off around four pounds with no creep - actually very good for an out of the box compared to most out of the box 1911s I've owned (three Colts, one Springfield and one Norinco).
I really like the way this gun fits in my hands - I have medium sized hands. The grip is more like a Browning Hi-Power or a CZ 75 with that little indent near the top of the grip to accommodate the web of the hand. The frame is anodized aluminum and the slide is actually painted - somewhat like the original CZ-75 manufactured during the 70's and 80's. The finish is durable - at least the Gun Scrubber and Shooter's Choice didn't seem to affect it during the initial cleaning. This Cougar is a keeper and I'm one happy camper.
They say that most gear made for the original Beretta Cougar will fit the Stoeger Cougar so I may be able to equip this pistol with the necessary holsters, etc..
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I wasn't able to get to the range right away and my weekend was taken up with too many other things. However, I was able to get out this morning to the west side of Utah lake and wring out the new pistol. I was pressed for time since we had a turkey day commitment at my mother-in-law's so I only took 130 rounds with me - a mixture of 115 grain reloads (115 grain copper plated lead over 4.7 grains of WW 231), 115 grain Winchester white box, and some Federal Premium 124 grain hydro-shock.
For once the gun rags gave an accurate review of this pistol's performance. Not one failure to feed, failure to eject, or malfunction of any kind. All the brass ended up in the same general location about seven to eight feet to behind me to my right. Accuracy was great. I haven't shot a centerfire semi-auto pistol in some time - nearly eight years - and my mechanics were less than perfect. However, with one out of three rounds, I was bouncing a four-inch diameter plastic ball all over the place at distances between fifteen and twenty yards.
Double action pull was long, but actually easier and, perhaps, lighter than my Taurus 85 snubbie and was comparable to my S&W model 19. The single action let off around four pounds with no creep - actually very good for an out of the box compared to most out of the box 1911s I've owned (three Colts, one Springfield and one Norinco).
I really like the way this gun fits in my hands - I have medium sized hands. The grip is more like a Browning Hi-Power or a CZ 75 with that little indent near the top of the grip to accommodate the web of the hand. The frame is anodized aluminum and the slide is actually painted - somewhat like the original CZ-75 manufactured during the 70's and 80's. The finish is durable - at least the Gun Scrubber and Shooter's Choice didn't seem to affect it during the initial cleaning. This Cougar is a keeper and I'm one happy camper.
They say that most gear made for the original Beretta Cougar will fit the Stoeger Cougar so I may be able to equip this pistol with the necessary holsters, etc..
